


Vultus in Speculo

by fragilevixen



Category: The X-Files
Genre: A lil liquid bravery, Accidental Voyeurism, Canon Divergent, Drinks and Making out, Episode: s05e12 Bad Blood, F/M, First Time, Public Display of Affection, Sex, Smut, humor and smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:21:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24939751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fragilevixen/pseuds/fragilevixen
Summary: The last of the paperwork on the Strickland case has been finalized and filed and Scully goes off for a drink at a known FBI watering hole. Mulder is invited but doesn’t show up until after Scully is halfway through a drink—giving him an opening to inquire about a whole lot more than her flirtations with the Sheriff in the booth of a rooftop bar.
Relationships: Fox Mulder & Dana Scully, Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 47
Kudos: 105
Collections: X-Files Smut Fanfic Exchange (2020)





	Vultus in Speculo

**Author's Note:**

  * For [msrheadcanon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/msrheadcanon/gifts).



> “What you think, you become. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you create.” – Buddha
> 
> “Vultus in Speculo” means looking through glass in Latin.
> 
> I know that the Columbia Room is a new establishment, but I couldn’t pass up using it. 
> 
> Jen, I hope that this is everything you were hoping for. I saw the prompt and thought of this story almost immediately, so I ran with it. I didn’t want to take the voyeurism too far and the humor balances things out a touch.

_There is never a time or place for true love._

_It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat,_

_In a single flashing, throbbing moment._

-Sarah Dessen

6:45 PM, Wednesday, February 11th 1998

X Files Basement Level Office, FBI Headquarters

Washington DC

Mulder had been tapping away at the keys, aggressively typing, and eyes darting between the notched-out letters and the monitor as Scully filed away paperwork that had begun to pile up. The busy work had ventured away from the tedium and slid into irritation as Mulder reached for the Styrofoam cup in front of him in the last-ditch effort to stimulate his overworked synapses. It wasn’t going to be enough, but it was a good effort as he drained the cold, stale coffee and exhaled loudly before tossing the cup into the trash. The cup bounced favorably and rolled into the liner followed by a quick pump of a fist from the saddest of victories. It was the little things that made late nights, like these, a little less repetitive and boring.

He glanced at Scully and observed as she knelt awkwardly in her skirt to shove a manila folder into the back of the bottom cabinet. An ordinary man might’ve been glued to the material of her skirt as it started to ride up but his eyes were steadied on the curve of her bottom lip. It was hard not to notice the edge of her tongue as it perched in the corner while she concentrated on not losing her balance. It was one of her habits that drove him crazy while adding to the charm that made her uniquely Scully. He wondered if, somewhere, she was doing it on purpose just to watch him squirm.

“Make yourself useful and hand me that stack of files, Mulder,” Scully’s voice nearly made him leap out of the chair as she tilted her head in his direction, hovering in that position with a hand extended toward him.

Mulder swallowed the embarrassment and outstretched for the stack, subtly relieved that she hadn’t caught him staring as he directed the files toward her. “I was just giving my eyes a moment before I resumed the last of the punishment from the Strickland case…”

“You have no one to blame but yourself for that, Mulder,” Scully rubbed her lips together as her fingertips grazed his in the exchange, rattling her off balance just enough to make her rock in her heels as she pushed the drawer shut. “How much more do you have to type up before we can leave?”

“Two paragraphs,” Mulder cleared his throat as the peripheral vision of her straightening out her skirt had him contemplating shoving every item off the desk to proposition her.

“Well, I’d suggest that you hurry up,” Scully smirked and shoved the last of the files into the middle drawer, barely paying attention to their alphabetical order as she casually tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “The backlog of filing is done and two, short paragraphs shouldn’t take that long to type.”

Scully knew it was distracting and derived a little pleasure out of it as she leaned against the desk and studied his motioning as he struggled to type. Scully knew, deep down, that she’d been dancing around the idea of gradually increasing the teasing of Mulder. It was working like a charm as her body language alone caused a misspelled word, or three, while he meandered his way through the last of the text conversion. On an average day, a tease might not have been so overt, but she felt like taking a chance as she tapped her fingernails against the lacquer and waited for the finality of the enter key. A smile curved across her lips as she watched him scoot back and angle his ankle across the top of his other leg while he leaned back in the chair to glance at the ceiling.

“Just like that, I am done, and the report has been transmitted to Skinner’s inbox,” Mulder wiggled his eyebrows at Scully and stretched his digits for the power button on the monitor while letting the air out of his lungs. “What’re your plans for the rest of the evening?”

“I went to get more coffee from upstairs and overheard Arlene rambling about a bar on Blagden Alley that sounded like it might be a good time for a change,” Scully maneuvered toward the opposite side of the desk to finish the last of her cup of coffee as she glanced at her watch. “It has a bunch of outdoor seating and apparently a lot of other agents like to go there for drinks. I figured it might be a nice change of pace.”

“You’re going out?” Mulder was already reaching for his jacket while she was gathering up her things, a pang of longing buried in his voice. “Sounds like you’re really going all out in the middle of the week, Scully.” 

“You’re welcome to come along, you know,” Scully slid into her coat and hid a smile as she grasped her purse. “If you want to, that is…”

Mulder felt his shin meet the edge of the desk with a thud as the invitation had him a little off-kilter, throttling his consciousness as he met her gaze. “I think I told Langly I’d show up for one of the illegal surveillance nights they like to glitter up with pizza and beer.”

Disappointment swirled in Scully’s belly as she chewed the inside of her cheek and nodded gently, lingering at the door. “Can’t really turn down one of Frohike’s pizzas—but if you change your mind, the bar is called the Columbia Room.”

“I’ll consider it and let you know,” Mulder nodded and flicked the desk lamp off.

There was a pregnant pause in the air as Scully had her fingers along with the door frame, smiling in his direction. As he returned that same expression, a fleeting thought passed between them that conveyed so much more than a yearning for Mulder to cancel his plans with the Gunmen. Scully disappeared into the hall, leaving the door ajar and the subtle scent of her perfume behind.

7:45 PM

Columbia Room

124 Blagden Alley NW

Washington, DC

It hadn’t been long since the rain had swept through and left a cold chill behind as Scully cradled the tulip glass filled with yellowish liquid out to the softly lit seating area on the rooftop garden. Escaping the looks from the nearly two dozen patrons inside was the first thing on her mind as she sank against the cushion at the opposite side of the brick wall, in the booth style seating area with a smooth top table in front of her. The speakers outside played the same melody as the one from inside, just at a lower volume, while the outdoor heater hummed and sighed in a continuous breath. Scully took another sip and let the vermouth and scotch hit before the Manzanilla and mango powder took over.

This wasn’t a typical drink of choice, but she wasn’t exactly feeling like herself as she crossed her legs and let the radiating heat and the breeze meet against her face, mingling against her cheeks.

“Of course, you’d choose the roof,” Mulder’s voice startled and thrilled as Scully’s eyes opened and her spine went rigid against the cushions. “Couldn’t pick a dark corner inside?”

“Did you see how many people were in there?” Scully lifted her glass and hid the blush behind it, looking up at him over the rim with a curious expression. “I didn’t think you were going to show. Decided to ditch the guys?”

“Oh, yeah, it was a little crowded in there and it must’ve been my imagination but I could’ve sworn I recognized a few people from the research department,” Mulder carried his rocks glass over and slid onto the cushion next to her, leaving a bit of room between them as he took a sip of the amber liquid. “I wouldn’t call it ditching…”

Scully bit down on her lip as she admired the thoughtful choice he’d made to change into jeans, a light jacket, and a gray tee shirt despite the nip in the air. The distraction was ample for her as she eyed the boyish posturing beneath his grinning and bedroom eyes. She felt a little overdressed, by contrast, but he didn’t seem to mind as he slipped free of the jacket, stealing a glance at her as she sipped her drink. He could’ve stood there staring at her for hours; just drinking in the sight. Scully clenched her jaw and bobbed her foot to hide the unusual level of restlessness that Mulder was influencing.

“You didn’t go telling Frohike you were leaving him for me, did you?” Scully was beaming behind her glass as a David Bowie tune elicited a soft tap of her toes against the floorboards. “Not that I’m complaining if you did.”

“He wasn’t pleased that I wouldn’t tell him where I was going,” Mulder palmed his glass and watched the cubes of ice swirl around with an orange peel, the fragrance wafting into the air as the wind changed directions just slightly. “I see why you chose the roof. You can sit out here and judge everyone behind the glass like a little voyeur.”

Scully nearly choked on the remainder of her drink as she tipped it back and battled with the contents of it in her throat. “Is that where your brain goes when you’re sitting out here?”

“Yours doesn’t?” Mulder didn’t need to know how much she’d had to drink but he could tell by the deepened hue of her cheeks that it had begun to take its toll as he took another, generous drink before placing it next to her empty. “You need another drink.”

“You’re a little out of your element tonight, Mulder,” Scully made eye contact with a server as she walked past the door, tapping the top of her glass before making eye contact with her unusually flirtatious partner next to her. “Is there something on your mind?”

“Wondering what good thing I did to earn the same look from you that you kept giving Sheriff Hartwell when we were in Chaney,” Mulder chastised her a bit and witnessed both of her eyes get big as her eyebrows aimed toward the sky, the budding grin hiding as she pressed her lips together.

“I have no idea what you’re referring to,” Scully said as though she were telling the truth, but the reality was that she was only half lying as she fished for an ice cube from the empty glass. “Even if I had been, what would it matter to you?”

Mulder pivoted his hips, aimed his knees toward hers, encroached on her dwindling personal space, and grasped his glass as the server replaced her empty with a full. “I haven’t consumed enough of my orange laced bourbon to be showing you a full hand when you’re still dodging questions. Why’d you invite me for a drink? Why are you sitting out here alone if you didn’t know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I’d show up?”

“I like the open air and I don’t like being stared at as though I’m a lonely, pathetic woman drinking by herself,” Scully tapped his thigh with the top of her hand and contemplated another, healthy gulp of liquid courage as it rested on a napkin on the table. “In the time that I’ve known you, I’ve learned to just take a shot in the dark and accept the risks as they come. Not every gamble will result in a loss…I’ve noticed.”

“So, was this just a hypothetical gamble, or was it something else?” Mulder’s free arm was against the spot where the cushions ended and the brick began, his hand angled in such a way that he tickled the back of her neck with the tips of his fingers until the goosebumps formed. “Are you cold? I could put my jacket around you.”

“Are you just going to ask me questions tonight?” Scully’s eyes darted in the direction of his arm as it moved behind her as a shiver moved through her, betraying any hope of being calm as she bit down on her lip. “Not cold at all.”

“Then, why are you shivering?” Mulder was utilizing the last shreds of bravery as he let his thumb trace the line of Scully’s jaw while his eyes appraised the birth of blush along her cheeks and down her neck. “Well, I don’t know. Do you want me to ask you questions all night?”

“I, uh, um…” Scully involuntarily licked her lips and reached for her drink, nearly spilling it as she swallowed a mouthful and felt the heat rising across the surface of her skin. “Not particularly, no…”

“What _do_ you want, Scully?” Mulder’s fingertips moved along her cheek and found her earlobe, teasing her skin as she held the sweating glass against her neck. “Hmmm?”

“We could get kicked out of the bar over what I _really_ want,” Scully inhaled sharply and kept her observance locked on his, free hand gravitating toward his thigh. “Did you come here to toy with me, or do you have a point in asking questions that dipped into the provocative subject matter?”

It wasn’t the liquid courage or the pretense of being able to blame it on the alcohol for Mulder as he leaned in and dragged his lips across the spot below her earlobe, enticing a low moan from Scully’s lips. “I can tell that you didn’t do a lot of observing before you walked out here or you’d realize it would take an awful lot to get us booted…Although, the idea of rising to the occasion is tempting.”

“My mind was elsewhere, Mulder,” Scully’s hand shook, and the glass slipped as she caught a glimpse of their reflections, at the flexing of Mulder’s bicep as he dotted the neckline of her shirt and jacket. “Anyone can see what you’re doing right now.”

“Can they?” Mulder turned his head and saw the same sight in the pane that she was, rousing the inclination to set his teeth against the hollow of her neck while his fingers swept through her hair, tugging until she tilted her head back. “Doesn’t seem like you really mind the idea of a stranger seeing you in a compromised position.”

“Mulder,” Scully’s head was swimming, her lips parted as the sensations flooded every nerve while he nibbled and kissed a trail along the expanse of her neck. “Ah…oh, my God.”

Mulder pulled the drink from Scully’s hand as it trembled, guiding her fingers into the protective clasp of his own as he shifted his mouth just enough to allure the gentle drop of her chin to meet him. They’d spent time waiting for the right moment but hadn’t figured out how to grope into the dark to bridge the gap or take a leap. A kiss set ablaze and the world all but disappeared as tenderness became a passion and hunger deepened in a single breath. It wasn’t exactly the way either of them had imagined the first kiss, but the resolute, buttoned-up resistance had finally come crashing down as Mulder’s tongue curved past Scully’s teeth and shifted against hers. As if the alcohol hadn’t been enough to overload every sense, the second wave of intoxication hit as the endorphins kicked in.

“Fucking hell,” Mulder’s lips, as ravenous as they’d become, allowed a gap to form between his and hers as Scully shifted his free hand in the direction of the bend of her crossed legs, encouraging her skirt a little higher. “Christ…almighty…thank you.”

“For what? I haven’t done anything but let you lead,” Scully sucked a breath in through her nostrils and licked her lips, redistributing the remnant of raspberry scented chapstick as her fingers gathered in his hair.

“For not changing out of the skirt,” Mulder grinned and squeezed her thigh, waiting for refusal but receiving approval as she drew him back, sucking his bottom lip between her teeth.

The action was frenetic and flustered but it had weight behind it as Scully’s fingers gripped the back of his neck, impulsively erasing the boundary that had once existed between them as her eyes closed. Electricity sparked and fevered touch seared paths with every pass of a hand as the wind picked up, peppering skin with gooseflesh as the dimmed light of the small bulbs glowed above. They’d stepped further into the deep end and allowed the current to take hold until breaths began to stutter and melt into one. Mulder played with fire as he tugged her closer, the fabric of her skirt riding up against his leg while their inner adolescence took over, freeing them from all shreds of regret and restraint. Scully squeezed his arm and let her fingers sneak underneath the material of his sleeve, clutching his shoulder as his mouth traveled toward her neck, lavishing her with another series of kisses.

Scully gasped as she focused her eyes on the glass once more, fully expecting to see nothing but their reflections but, instead, capturing a dual reflection in a pair of spectacles. “Mulder, someone’s watching us.”

“I guess it’s a good thing I hadn’t started undoing any buttons,” Mulder’s mouth was dangerously close to her earlobe while his hand was tucked under her thigh, manhandling her pose nearly all the way off the seat. “It’s their problem if they like to watch…”

Scully met another of his kisses as she let out a laugh and caressed his cheek as his chin dipped to push her bottom lip down. The feeling of having anyone watch hadn’t been fully absorbed until Scully began to process it as a reality. The worst of it was that it had officially planted roots in the back of her mind, spreading like vines throughout her consciousness even as Mulder’s lips and hands struck chords like he had memorized her twice over. It wasn’t a sensation she wanted invading her thoughts as the taste of alcohol and his mouth were tugging at a yearning buried deep, openly inviting conflict. The face behind the eyewear screamed of familiarity and had her opening her eyes to take another look, against her better judgment.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding,” Scully felt the pang of subjugation wrecking the indulgence as Mulder’s lips sank to her collarbone while she squinted toward the window, studying that face a little more. “Mulder, it’s Skinner doing the noticing.”

Mulder grimaced and exhaled slow, breathing against her skin as he glanced up at her, the mischievousness creeping in. “Well, don’t pay him any attention. He can be a looky-loo and make it awkward all he wants. We don’t have to participate in giving him credence. He gets enough of that when we’re at work.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Scully giggled, biting down on her lip as she made the unfortunate mistake of glancing at the window for a third time, cementing visual contact with Skinner. “Shit…I looked him square in the eyes.”

“I’d say that’s in the manual on how to make a man wilt in under thirty seconds,” Mulder groaned and looked up at her as he held onto his glass, tenuously directing his chin toward that same line of sight as he took a drink. “He really chose tonight, of all nights, to not be elbow deep in that sadomasochism that we both know he loves so much?”

“Do you want to get out of here?” Scully made the same motion to her glass, gazing at him as the condensation met her bottom lip while a hint of a smile manifested. “Or were you planning on getting sloppy drunk, feeling me up a little more, and ending up leaving in the opposite direction?”

“I think that question is better suited for _you_ to be answering,” Mulder licked his lips and tilted his chin against his own shoulder, glancing at the window to gauge whether he should be concerned or not. “I never pictured Skinner as the voyeuristic type.”

They could’ve ignored Skinner’s invasive set of peepers from the other side of the window as the excitement climbed another notch. Mulder continued to drink while he encouraged her skirt a touch higher on her leg with his thumb and index. An involuntary moan left her lips as he gave her thigh a squeeze, digging his thumb against the gap above thigh high nylons. The choice to forgo the waist-high, control top pantyhose hadn’t been intentional but he appreciated it as bare, hot, smooth skin radiated heat against his thumbprint. He mouthed ‘oh my’ as she scooted closer, momentarily pushing his limit of how long he’d venture to keep touching her with their boss looking on.

“Stop saying his name,” Scully nervously laughed and put her hand over the top of his as his palm glided across the curve of her inner thigh. “How long do you plan on letting him watch?”

“I don’t know if it’s necessarily about letting him, Scully,” Mulder grinned and wrapped his fingers around hers as she shifted the cotton of his shirt. “I don’t think he’s watching to get his jollies off—I don’t think he can tell who you’re having a little extracurricular fun with.”

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” Scully was relieved that the stare from their boss had become more of wandering, reluctant series of stolen peeks but the deft set of digits along the hem of her skirt flicked at her resilience. “Mulder…maybe we should go somewhere more private.”

“I’m finding a little pleasure in the effect it has on you,” Mulder was frank and it evoked a tight-lipped mewl from Scully as he squeezed the space above her knee before sliding backward just slightly. “I’ll go to the little boy’s room and we’ll meet at the bar…then we can disappear?”

“Promise?” Scully licked her lips as he stood up and finished the drink in a single gulp, the eyes of Skinner just feet away framing a curiously smug expression.

Mulder nodded, the boyish grin hiding on his lips as he placed the empty glass next to hers before moving toward the interior of the bar. It was then that he understood why their boss had been so curious and Mulder’s chuckle was a little overdone as Arlene’s exuberant laugh preceded Skinner’s. The boss man was getting a little action and had been drinking a little more than he should. The alcohol and gossip-fueled foreplay centered around Skinner and Arlene was more than enough for Mulder to witness as his field of vision collided directly with his boss’s as he knocked one back.

_Jesus._

Mulder shook his head as he weaved through the mingling crowd, servers, and the labyrinth of tables until he was at the end of the hall. The door to the bathroom squealed loudly as he pushed it open and entered the poorly lit space. He had enough on his mind and now, he was navigating through an abysmally illuminated hall and restroom. It was sobering him up awfully fast and the only clarity in his plight was the petite redhead with a lopsided smile in a short skirt. His smirk went crooked and a laugh echoed as his eidetic memory reeled and replayed the moments before he got up.

Mulder rolled his head back and exhaled as he stared forward, the twinge of intoxication flowing through his veins as he opened his eyes, relieved. “Pay the check…and get the hell out of here.”

“Didn’t think I’d run into you here,” Skinner’s voice nearly made Mulder leap out of his skin from the urinal next to him.

“Sneaking up on a guy while he’s taking a leak is a dangerous game, Skinman,” Mulder didn’t want to make eye contact but the large, wall-length mirror made it impossible as his face contorted and his eyes bugged out. “The hell are you doing following me into the bathroom?”

“You call it following but I call it taking a piss, Mulder,” Skinner’s eyebrows were moving up and down, creating an animation to his face that illustrated his level of intoxication as his laugh came out in a long snark. “You know this is one of those bars where agents go to discreetly…get handsy, right? I already saw who you were…getting handsy with.”

“Jesus, fucking, Christ,” Mulder pushed his forehead against the mirror and finished peeing, elated that he wasn’t going to have to subject himself to this discussion as he composed himself and went to the sink. “I don’t really know what you think you saw but you should probably just keep your mouth shut about it.”

“You want to run that by me again, Mulder, or was that one of those phrases that you decided to blurt out in mid-stream?” Skinner was narrowing a glare through the mirror as Mulder was at the sink, a moderate slur to his voice as he zipped his fly and furrowed his brow while waiting to wash his hands. “So, I didn’t see you getting comfortable with Agent Scully?”

“Oh, I guess you were sitting there being a voyeuristic pervert and watching?” Mulder went for the paper towels, adding fuel to the fire by matching questions with more questions as Skinner’s inebriated laugh filled the bathroom. “How much have you had to drink?”

“More than usual, less than others,” Skinner was a bit like an impertinent child but he was also highly amused by how uncomfortable he was making Mulder as he rinsed his hands and flicked the excess at him. “You know that no one gives a shit if you and Scully are messing around, right? That whole _agents aren’t allowed to cohort with their partners_ is a load of bullshit that supervisors tell their underlings to scare them into not fucking at their desks.”

“We are absolutely not discussing this,” Mulder wiped the warm water off his face and rolled his eyes at the audacity being demonstrated by his boss as he approached the door handle. “You still haven’t answered my question about being a pervert, Skinman?”

Skinner followed and let the chuckle become obnoxious as the shit-eating grin plastered on his face became a little more pronounced as Mulder avoided looking him in the eye. “You act like I was looking at you two with some sort of intent...when in reality, I saw Scully sitting alone and wondered who she had decided to bring to a bar known for canoodling.”

“Please, stop talking,” Mulder could see Scully at the bar with her debit card between her fingers as Arlene provided a less-than-pleasant distraction with a boisterous laugh. “Don’t repeat the word _canoodling_ , either...no one needs to hear you saying it.”

“Well, for what it’s worth...you two seem to be enjoying yourselves,” Skinner craned his neck to find Arlene as she leaned back with her hands along the lacquer top of the bar. “Don’t let me continue to interrupt.”

Skinner captured Scully’s eye and delivered an alcohol-soaked, cheesy grin as he reached past her to intercept the shot glass from in front of Arlene. Awkward was appropriate but might not have gone far enough as Scully’s eyes widened and the bartender took the waiting card from her fingers. She was amused and bemused at the same time as Mulder came up beside her, snugly nuzzling his chin against the bend of her shoulder. A giggle from her lips softened the suspense and reinvigorated the playful energy as his arms snaked around her waist while they waited.

Holding her felt natural even with a crowd of onlookers stealing a quick look at their budding intimacy.

“You could’ve waited for me to pay,” Mulder spied her as she signed her name on the receipt, peeping at the way her letters spiraled on the paper.

“I think it’s only fair if it’s on me after what you just went through in the bathroom,” Scully pushed the receipt across the bar top and flashed a pearly smile at Mulder as she turned to look up at him. “Next time you can be gallant…lets get out of here.”

_It does not matter_

_How slowly you go_

_As long as you do not stop._

-Confucius

40 Minutes Later

They’d gotten three dirty looks in the hallway over the course of ninety seconds from the smacking of lips and muffled laughter while Mulder battled with the key in the lock. Scully didn’t let him get the keys all the way out of the lock before tugging him by the wrist, knocking the ring of brass across the floor. Mulder gave the door a generous kick with the bottom of his shoe, rattling it on its hinges as it shut. The dim, cool interior of Mulder’s apartment enveloped them, beckoning them past the table and archway until Scully’s legs rubbed against the edge of the couch. Her chest heaved as her fingers seized the leather while her eyes looked up at his with so much longing and desire. A smile crept across his face as he watched her height change with the silent removal of her shoes and the trapping of her bottom lip between her teeth.

Scully’s heartbeat was thrumming up into her throat as the twitch between her legs became steady drumming fueled by warmth and building energy.

“You are full of so many unexpected surprises tonight,” Mulder met her in the middle and guided her jacket off, discarding it onto the floor while leaning in for a soft but loaded kiss.

Scully’s bottom lip pushed his mouth open, giving the tip of her tongue just enough access to slide across his teeth as she tugged him closer and moved her mouth back just enough to look him in the eye. “Just tonight? Or is that a general statement fueled by a little bit of excitement?”

“A little from column A, a lot from column B,” Mulder was already to keep his erection in check since before they’d gotten into the taxi, the sensation of which was making his head swim as her agile fingers unburdened him of his belt. “I was beginning to think that I was the only eager one.”

“You’ve been an increasing preoccupation in more than a few thoughts that I can’t seem to shake,” Scully made the confession as she arched onto her toes to kiss the space just below his jaw while her fingers slipped underneath his shirt. “Now, here we are…”

Mulder played with the frizzy sections of her hair that had gotten damp on the way to the apartment and gazed into her shimmering steel blues as she looked up at him. “I stopped counting the number of times you invaded a dream or a moment of cogitation. I just let it happen and clung to a little conviction that touching you wouldn’t always need to end in me moving away as though it never happened.”

“So, touch me,” Scully held a breath and grazed the sculpted slope of his abs with her fingernails, kindling a shudder from him while she moved a little nearer, breathing in the dwindling scent of bourbon and orange peel on his palate. “All night.”

They’d been slow, tentative even, until now as Mulder’s fingers met the soft skin of Scully’s cheek and tilted her head back with a caress. Her mouth met his as the steady tapping of rain was rhythmic alongside the beating of their hearts. An edacious appetite burgeoned from that kiss as mouths came alive and fingers sought out skin in frenetic bursts. Scully dotted her fingertips around him, along the external oblique and thoracolumbar fascia, working her way up to his latissimus dorsi, dragging her digits in circles. Mulder tugged at the front of her shirt, popping buttons loose until his thumbs could feel the smoothness of her skin as the goosebumps formed.

The hum of a moan rippled from her and jolted against his lips, rocking the balance of his knees as he wrapped his arms around her.

“You are so Goddamn perfect…” Mulder’s teeth played against her jaw and neck, signaling like undecipherable Morse code, as he pulled the bunched fabric of her shirt down her arms, letting it drop at her feet. “And I don’t deserve you.”

“I don’t know about all of that, Mulder,” Scully’s voice trembled while her fingers urged his shirt up a little higher, craving more of him. “All I want is you.”

He’d memorized every freckle and studied the way her lashes moved to cover up being caught looking in his direction but he was unveiling a new layer of his Scully as an appetence flickered up at him. It was deeper than pining and burned white-hot. The air hovered between them, potent and unmoving, as Scully’s bottom lip moved carefully between her teeth, silently soliciting any reaction. Mulder raised his arms above his head, giving a smooth tug to the soft, well-worn cotton shirt he’d been wearing until every mark and scar was illuminated in soft glow from half-open mini-blinds. Just like he’d done with her countless times, Scully had guiltily spent ample time committing him to memory.

“Are you absolutely certain you want to keep going?” Mulder chewed the inside of his cheek as his fingers popped the hook and eye closure of her skirt open, fixating on the zipper along her hip. “We can stop.”

“I can’t go back to fantasizing about you and waking up in the middle of the night only to realize you’re not there,” Scully shook her head and stepped forward, tilting against his hands as hers traced the space below his collarbone and flattened her palm across his pectorals. “I don’t want to stop.”

Mulder’s fingers climbed higher and an involuntary hiss left Scully’s mouth as his thumbs grazed perked and attentive nipples through the thin, soft, and lace etched material of her bra. He licked his lips and dragged the straps down, guiding her elbows back just enough to remove one obstacle in his way. The swell of her breasts became more noticeable as the bra barely covered her and invited more friction against tender flesh than she’d anticipated as his mouth left a trail of kisses along her neck. His fingers released their grip on her arms and pressed against the small of her back as her heartbeat vibrated against his mouth as he moved southward. Scully groaned into the air as Mulder’s teeth settled at her sternum; the subtle tickle of stubble between both breasts as she struggled to maintain balance.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” Mulder groaned against her skin and unhooked the closure of her bra as she ran her fingers through his hair, holding him close.

The utterance was subtle but it meant so much more as his lips and tongue smoothed across soft alabaster and blush amaranth, taking time to taste the residual of lotion and body wash. Vanilla, lilac, and white tea balanced just enough with a touch of musk. He had smelled it on the back of her neck a thousand times. Mulder’s eyes caught a glimpse of an open-mouthed vocalization as he looked up and thumbed over the waiting, observed nipple just inches away. The articulation was pronounced, breathy, and perfect—everything he’d imagined in the middle of each dream.

It was everything that she’d wanted him to hear so many times as hips lifted from the mattress and her back arched while another solo itch was satiated.

Tonight, was different.

“Mulder, don’t stop,” Scully gasped at the feel of his hands strumming the well-tuned instrument of her body, from the lightest touch to the center of her back to the commanding grasp of her backside. “Please, don’t stop.”

That boyish smile that made her ache graced his lips as he pushed the zipper down and felt the give of the pressed poly blend as it slid away from her hips. He was captivated by her as the second to last article of clothing dropped to the floor; exposing a little bit more of her vulnerability to him. Deeper flecks of green shimmered as he marveled at her curvature, subtle and not. He knelt, littering the expanse of her stomach with kisses as his fingers trailed down her hips, tugging at the elastic of her panties. She inhaled another sharp breath as the heat flooded to her core and radiated against his palm as he tugged at the satin along the tips of his fingers. He tilted his chin, looking up at her as her lips parted and a soft, throaty sigh reverberated through her.

Mulder didn’t give her the opportunity to think or fully fathom his actions as he elevated her knee and nibbled on her inner thigh. Scully swayed against the side of the couch and reached for the wall, shifting the table lamp onto its side in the process. The not-so-gentle maneuvering resulted in her ass scooting against the edge of the side table as he lifted her thighs a little higher and slipped his index and middle finger across the satin and lace between her legs. Scully latched onto the oak behind her and bit down on her lip as Mulder teased through the material of her underwear, all the while looking up at her as though he’d never seen anything so incredible. She stretched out her hand and drew a handful of his hair as his fingers moved past the satin and lace before they slipped past slick folds and a throbbing bundle of nerves.

“Oh, fuck,” Scully tossed her head back and involuntarily bucked against his hand, stifling a moan as she pressed her lips together. “Holy…shit.”

“I want to go slow but you’re not helping,” Mulder had her leg perched across his shoulder, his free hand carefully teasing the bare skin at the top of her thigh-highs as he drew her wetness with the other.

“Not my fault,” Scully’s eyes rolled back as his index and middle finger parted just enough to cradle the throbbing bundle of nerves crying out between her legs, evoking a low, stuttered whimper. “Foreplay started at the bar and I’ve been agonizing since then.”

Mulder moved his fingers in and out in a painstaking rhythm even as her hips betrayed her by meeting every move with emphasis, exhorting him to go faster. “Do you have any idea the effect you have on me, Scully?”

Scully licked her lips and wrapped her fingers around his wrist, desperately tugging him high enough to get a grip on the waistband of his pants. “I think I have an idea.”

“God…fuck,” Mulder equalized his balance on the side table as the zipper came down in a singular motion and his jeans dropped to his knees before he could fully comprehend her knees around his hips, tugging him adjacent. “…Are you trying to tell me that you don’t want to go slow?”

“Uh huh…” Scully nodded her head as she squeezed her fingers around his cock, stroking him in her direction while pushing the boxers down and away from his hips. “Is that okay with you?”

Mulder gritted his teeth and swallowed a groan as his erection pulsated within her grasp, his eyes locked on hers as she educed him closer. “Oh yeah, that’s more than okay with me.”

Scully inched forward and licked his bottom lip while her hand stayed rubbing the length of him, motioning his hips impermeably against her inner thighs. A flash of electricity flowed between them as Mulder chased Scully’s mouth, savoring the smallest of tastes as he snaked a hand around her thigh and squeezed. Mulder breathed through pursed lips and wrapped his fingers around hers, navigating them away from his painfully pulsing cock to liberate her from the wet panties that barely clung to her hips. Scully’s heart pounded in her chest as the thrill took over; the air kissed bare skin and nipped at lingering wetness. Mulder tossed the wad of satin and lace onto the table behind her and angled Scully’s thigh onto his hip as he teased her folds with the tip of his cock before filling her, slow and meticulously.

“I’ve waited for so long,” Scully whimpered, wrapping her legs around him while her fingers dug into the curves of his shoulder blades. “So fucking long.”

Mulder growled as he turned, lifted Scully off of the floor, and spun just enough to tip the lamp over trapping her against the molding. “I know…I know…fuck…I know…”

Time slowed as Mulder gazed into Scully’s pools of steel and icy aquamarine framed above blush kissed cheeks and bitten lips. She was exquisite and alluring even as her breasts bounced just slightly against his chest as he thrust slowly and sedulously. The plastered smiles began to fade as the movement became exacting and arduous and Scully’s back and ass rubbed then smacked against the wall. Scully tipped her head back as the grinding became overwrought and profound while Mulder dragged his fingers down her hips to grasp her ass. Moans staggered from their open mouths and melted together as they clung to one another, overcome with the impulse to feel.

It was so much more than the intertwining of their bodies as the gelidity in the air summoned the goosebumps over their flesh.

The world went fuzzy as heat bubbled to the surface and spilled over as Mulder thrust his hips, colliding with Scully, filling her to the hilt. Her fingers stretched and clasped against his skin, pressing along every contracting muscle as every nerve overfired and sent an impulse to every part of her. It was overwhelming and elating at the same time even as Mulder’s knees wobbled and he rolled his fingers across the swell of her ass, emboldening her hips to undulate in a circle against him. His mouth opened and his chin tilted as he keened at the ceiling. The sound alone was worth every second as Scully reached back, palming the edge of the wall for leverage as she met each palpable thrust with a swivel of her hips and a pitch of her thighs.

“You’re killing me, Scully,” Mulder murmured and adjusted his positioning with a rougher buck of his hips against her, eliciting a loud, guttural cry in the process as she twitched around him.

“Mulder, I’m close,” Scully struggled with a rasp as she inhaled a deep breath, the sheen of sweat along her brow as she kissed his jaw and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m so close.”

Mulder turned, carrying her toward the couch, kicking the scattered clothes in the way and smirked as the cushions squeaked beneath them. He leaned forward, manhandling her as he yanked her toward him to crash into her all over again. Her thighs climbed and legs swathed around him as he drove into her, smooth and deliberate. Their lips met and arms enveloped one another as momentum shifted and time seemingly stopped. Nothing mattered but the beating of their hearts and the meeting of thrusts as they pushed each other toward the same end—toward a first of many moments to cry out the other’s name for anyone to hear.

The impulse clicked and the pressure gave way as Mulder’s imposing size hit every spot and sent Scully reeling before the rush finally hit.

“Oh, fuck, I’m coming!” Scully’s declarative was unexpected but prodded Mulder’s senses as he felt a jolt of his own throttle through his pelvis and spilled over with a final, hustled thrust.

Her name bounced off the walls as his Adam’s apple bobbed and strained against his throat. The elated exhale followed as the remaining spasm worked through Scully’s clit and jerked against Mulder’s cock. His eyes fluttered for a long moment as he slid an arm under her and guided her out from underneath of him, slowly withdrawing with a certain reluctance. The leather squealed again as bare skin moved across the cushions while Mulder pulled her close, mild astonishment written on his face as they both fit. She hummed as the first, cold shiver rocked through her before radiating against him as he shuddered in response.

“Your couch just earned serious points,” Scully exhaled, her voice soft and husky as she glanced back at her backside barely dangling off the edge of the seat.

“Times like these make me wish I hadn’t turned my bedroom into a stack of forgotten paperwork and magazines,” Mulder was still catching his breath as his head found the pillow while groping for the afghan along the back of the couch. “It’ll have to do, though.”

“You mean pornography and your monthly subscription to _UFO Magazine_?” Scully smirked and spooned against him, wrapping her nylon clad leg across him as he draped the blanket over both of them. “If you want to call it forgotten paperwork and magazines you’re welcome to, but you’d be lying.”

“Exposed and wounded at the same time,” Mulder chuckled and glanced at the lamp on its side at the end of the couch where her panties were still resting, illuminated in the dim light between the shade and the overturned base. “Should we be thanking the Bald Wonder in the morning?”

“I’m just curious enough to ask what for?” Scully’s thumb drew circles along his pectorals as she nuzzled against him.

Mulder’s lips placed a kiss along her temple as he held her close, the taps of rain against the windowpane increasing with every passing second. “Watching from the other side of a window just long enough to knock us off-balance and put us right where we’re meant to be…”

“Hmmm, maybe we shouldn’t be so direct about it, though?” Scully wrinkled her nose and pulled the blanket a little higher.

“Could be right…” Mulder furrowed his brow and quietly stared at the shadows on the ceiling as he contemplated his words for a long moment. “We’ll just say, appreciate you vultus in speculo.”

“Apropos.”

**Author's Note:**

> A big thank you to Monikafilefan for the fabulous beta work, your insight kept me off the ledge (of frustration). A second thanks to Cate for swinging through this as a second read. 
> 
> You both kept me sane.
> 
> Quotes by:  
> Buddha  
> Sarah Dessen  
> Confucius
> 
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and appreciated. I'll try to get back to everyone with a thank you. <3


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